As people worry about keeping their jobs, will this make it harder for them to ask for ìbenefitsî such as flexible working? The Government seems to think it might and is reviewing its plans to extend flexible working to parents of children under 16. Working mums [www.workingmums.co.uk], a recruitment website which offers flexible jobs to parents and advice about employment issues, has certainly had a number of requests for information recently on how to appeal when a flexible work request is turned down. One prison officer whose partner had left her with a six year old child said her work had refused her shift patterns which worked around childcare. Her current shift pattern means she has to drop off her daughter at 6.15am and there is no childcare available in her area at that time. Moreover, there are concerns that flexible workers might be the first to be cut in the current economic gloom. Another woman who worked part-time in the hotel and catering industry described how she arrived at work one day to be told she had been sacked after working there for several years due to the economic downturn.
But if you look more closely the picture is much more complicated than such anecdotes suggest. Poll after poll suggests employees rate flexible working or even home working as the most valued perk and this includes the up and coming Generation Y. Legislation extending the right to request flexible working backs this up. Polls also show that the economic downturn means more women are going back to work or working longer hours. Working mumsí current poll asks precisely this question and some 505 people have voted with 79% saying that they are working or working longer hours because of concerns about a possible recession or worse.
Working mumsí annual survey of over 1,100 women shows that one of the major hurdles to women going back to work is the perceived lack of flexibility in the workplace. This is particularly the case for those changing jobs – over 72% of women felt that the lack of appropriate and available flexible jobs was the biggest barrier to returning to work. But many had not asked for flexible working in their original post. Some 57% of those who asked for flexible working in their original post said they had either been granted it or reached some form of compromise. This was a marked improvement on the previous year where 90% said they thought it was very difficult to find flexible work. One of their big concerns is that the flexible jobs they do find do not challenge them sufficiently.
Many of the 28,000 candidates currently registered on the site have 10 to 20 years of experience in their fields. They include chief executives, lawyers, accounts managers, IT executives and editors.
Employers are beginning to wake up to their potential and to realise that by implementing flexible working they can retain skilled staff, build loyalty and motivate them to work smarter. Many working mums bring with them additional skills – organisation abilities [running a small team who are totally dependent on you], diplomacy [anything in the workplace is easier than dealing with a toddler tantrum] and communication skills [getting siblings to stop fighting].
Indeed, there are reports that forward-thinking employers are looking at how they can use the flexible work agenda to give their company a headstart in the economic situation by looking at how the company as a whole can be more flexible, for instance, to client demands in a 24/7 world and by retaining skilled workers who can do their job in less time than those who need more training. It is about working smarter rather than merely downsizing. A job share, for instance, brings your company the experience and input of two people for the price of one. Another win win outcome of allowing forms of flexible working such as homeworking is that companies cut their overheads while employees cut their travel and fuel bills.
Of course, no one would deny that implementing flexible working requires changes in management style and company culture. Managers from top to bottom may need training in how to think out of the box and ensure other employees donít feel resentful. One way round this is to offer flexible working across the board, but this needs to be carefully planned to ensure operational effectiveness. Decisions should not be taken on an ad hoc basis, but carefully thought through with procedures fully documented and understood by all staff. Some jobs, although fewer and fewer, cannot be done flexibly. This needs to be clearly communicated to staff. Flexible working clearly creates different demands on managers. Instead of clocking the hours staff work, they have to focus more on performance and on monitoring quality. They need to think creatively and communicate well with their employees. They need to ensure remote staff feel included. These are not insurmountable barriers. Forward-thinking companies feel keeping ahead of the flexible work agenda keeps them ahead of the game. City firms, under more pressure than most at the moment, admit the flexible work agenda is more challenging in the current climate and that the emphasis in the past has been on the benefit to employees of flexible working, rather than the advantages for the company. To work effectively, flexible working must ensure that all partiesí needs are met. Carolanne Minashi, head of diversity for markets and banking in Europe, the Middle East and Africa at finance group Citi, says: ìIt needs to be presented as a triangle where everyoneís needs have to be met. There may need to be more of a compromise on all sides.î But it is certainly something that, if handled properly, can work to everyoneís advantage.
Workingmums.co.uk offers flexible jobs, advice on areas such as employment legislation and childcare, news, features, careers tips and blogs.
What will the economic downturn mean for the flexible working agenda?
As people worry about keeping their jobs, will this make it harder for them to ask for ìbenefitsî such as flexible working?
